Black Sunday (1960)

A vengeful witch and her fiendish servant return from the grave and begin a bloody campaign to possess the body of the witch's beautiful look-alike descendant. Only the girl's brother and a handsome doctor stand in her way.

Director:

Mario Bava

Writers:

Ennio De Concini (screenplay), Mario Serandrei (screenplay)

Stars:

Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checchi

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Barbara Steele	...	Katia Vajda / Princess Asa Vajda (as Barbara Steel)
John Richardson	...	Dr. Andre Gorobec
Andrea Checchi	...	Dr. Thomas Kruvajan
Ivo Garrani	...	Prince Vajda
Arturo Dominici	...	Igor Javutich / Javuto
Enrico Olivieri	...	Prince Constantine Vajda
Antonio Pierfederici	...	Priest
Tino Bianchi	...	Ivan
Clara Bindi	...	Inn Keeper
Mario Passante	...	Nikita, the Coachman
Renato Terra	...	Boris
Germana Dominici	...	Sonya, the Innkeeper's Daughter

Storyline

In the Seventeenth Century, in Maldavia, Princess Asa Vajda and her lover Javutich (Arturo Dominici) are killed by the local population, accused of witchcraft. A mask of Satan is attached to their faces. Princess Asa curses her brother, promising revenge to his descents. The body of Javutich is buried outside the cemetery, and the coffin of Princess Asa is placed in the family's tomb with a cross over it for protection. Two hundred years later, Professor Thomas Kruvajan and his assistant, Dr. Andre Gorobec, are going to a congress in Russia and they accidentally find the tomb. Dr. Thomas breaks the cross, releasing the evil witch. When they are leaving the place, Dr. Andre meets Princess Katia Vajda, descendant of Princess Asa, and falls in love with her. Meanwhile, Katia is threatened by the witch, who wants to use her body to live again.

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Plot Keywords:

gothic horror | iron mask | vampire | witch | tomb | 

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Taglines:

Once every 100 years the undead of hell terrorize the world in an orgy of stark horror

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Genres:

Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

15 February 1961 (USA)

Also Known As:

Black Sunday

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Galatea Film, Jolly Film, Alta Vista Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Good reviews plus word-of-mouth reportedly turned this into American International's highest grossing film up to that time, exceeding their grosses for Goliath and the Barbarians (1959) and Roger Corman's House of Usher (1960).

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Goofs

In the scene where Princess Asa pauses by her father's coffin, she is wearing black stockings and shoes under her dress. She then leaves the room to look for the others and is seen running down the hall barefoot and without stockings.

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Quotes

Dr. Thomas Kruvajan: You have no reason to fear the dead. They sleep very soundly.

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Crazy Credits

For "The Mask of Satan," the English language version prepared in Italy, Barbara Steele's name is listed as "Barbara Steel" on the trailer and on the credits of the film itself.

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Connections

Referenced in The Lords of Salem (2012)

User Reviews

Living dead masterpiece of Italian cinema

Be sure and watch the uncut version with the title "The Mask of Satan," not the censored "Black Sunday" copy, to get the full effect of this living dead masterpiece of Italian cinema. More a movie of the undead than a vampire flick, it reminds the horror aficionado of a Val Lewton film from the 1940's, especially "The Leopard Man," not that "The Mask of Satan" is about leopards, but the mood and atmosphere are similar.

The film is about a woman of darkness and her mate who were executed for witchcraft two centuries before the Napoleonic period of European history. The most gruesome feature of the execution involved nailing a mask of Satan to their faces by means of a giant sledgehammer before they were entombed. By accident two hundred years later a doctor and his assistant while journeying through the region by coach on a dark stormy night filled with eerie devilish sounds, the doctor removes the mask from Princess Asa Vajda supposed corpse. Now Princess Vajda and her fiendish companion become free to seek their revenge. Their evil is released on the world and must be stopped.

This is undoubtedly director Mario Bava best film. The marvelous camera work draws the viewer into the maelstrom of darkness and evil through innovative movements and angles. The shadowy settings where the actors are posed in ominous fashion are unforgettable. One obvious inspiration for Bava was the contemporary British Hammer horror film popular in America, especially with the drive-in crowd. The arrival of Katia Vajda with what appear to be the dogs of Hell, standing like a silhouette of damnation, reminds one of a Caspar David Friedrich painting from the German Romantic art movement of the Napoleonic era. One wonders if the director of "The Omen," Richard Donner, patterned his creepy scene in the cemetery with the Rottweilers after this scene in "The Mask of Satan."

This movie remains a must see for horror fans, somewhat of a lost treasure.